The grand main hall of Budapest's famous Gellert Baths. Thermal baths at the complex contain water from Gellert hill's mineral hot springs.JEN COLENUTT/SPECIAL TO POSTMEDIA NETWORK

By JEN COLENUTT

During its tumultuous history, Hungary has seen it borders shrink and been invaded multiple times — most recently by the Soviets who occupied the country from 1956 to 1991, when the last of the Soviet forces withdrew.

Since the fall of communism in 1989, Hungary and its capital have been healing and rebuilding. And today, Budapest restaurants, shops, attractions and culture are thriving.

With beautiful architecture ranging from Gothic, Renaissance and Ottoman to Baroque, Classical and Art Nouveau, this “Jewel of the Danube” is a UNESCO world heritage site nestled between soaring spires and domes, and linked by beautiful bridges.

The Danube River divides the city into two distinct parts: Buda and Pest. “Buda” is the Renaissance-inspired half, carpeted by hills, the castle-like Fisherman’s Bastion that overlooks the city and the Matthias church with its colourful tiled roof.

The majestic Hungarian Parliament Building stands at the edge of the Danube River in Budapest. Its ornate architecture is particularly striking when seen from the river at night. JEN COLENUTT PHOTO

“Pest” is home to the one of Europe’s largest and most picturesque parliament buildings and St. Stephen’s Basilica, the country’s most prominent church. Named for Hungary’s first king, the basilica houses what is said to be St. Stephen’s mummified right fist, which for a small sum can be lit up for a photo, and the remains of the country’s most famous soccer player, Ferenc Puskas.

Budapest is also home to the world’s second-largest synagogue (the Dohany Street or Great Synagogue) and the world’s second oldest metro line (the Millenium Underground Railway). And of all the capital cities in the European Union, Budapest is the one with the most thermal springs and many public baths, where visitors can soak their cares away.

Shabby chic

The city’s old Jewish quarter is bustling with “ruin pubs” — abandoned buildings turned into hip bars, each with its own unique ramshackle style. This is where to find $2 beers and a chance to add to the graffiti on the walls. Off the wall is literally on the wall in ruin pubs.

Szimpla Kert, the city’s first and best known ruin pub, occupies a derelict warehouse with an open air courtyard at its centre. The facade is always changing and artifacts from the communist era are tacked to the walls and ceilings. A bathtub, disco balls, and an old East German car you can sit in add to its atmosphere.

A little farther down the same street, the Red Ruin bar is completely covered in red paint and quirky murals of communist leaders such as a mohawk-coiffed Lenin and Karl Marx in a birthday hat. Anti-communist graffiti spray-painted on the walls adds to the ambience.

Cheers in Hungarian is Egeszsegedre! It’s best remembered as “I guess she can drive,” but slur the words so it sounds like “Egg-esh ay-ged-reh.”

A vendor makes chimney cakes at Karavan. The popular cylindrical treat is served hot with ice cream. JEN COLENUTT PHOTO

Local eats

With many small family owned wineries and restaurants — and a love for paprika and spicy sausages — Budapest is carving out a name for itself in the gastronomy game

Be sure to stop by Karavan in the Jewish quarter and sample the food truck offerings. This is the place to try langos — a rich deep-fried flatbread topped with sour cream and cheese — burgers, meat alternatives and chimney cakes hot off the coals and served with ice cream.

Traditional dishes can be found at Evidens bistro. Try the goulash, hortobagyi palacsinta (savoury pancakes filled with meat or chicken) and lesco (a tomato and pepper stew) all soaking in delicious rich sauces.

Feel like Italian? Head to Trattoria Pomo D’Oro. The wine list is a small novella with over 100 different vintages but with sommeliers on staff, it’s easy to make the right choice.

To end the evening, Unicum (a herbal digestif) and Palinka (fruit brandy) are Hungarian drinks that shouldn’t be missed. Palinka is often served after meals in restaurants. Made of locally grown fruit — usually cherries — it is said to be effective in helping to settle the stomach after sampling all of the delectable food.

Art Nouveau fountain in one of the smaller mineral pools at Budapest’s famous Gellert Baths. JEN COLENUTT PHOTO

Taking the waters

With approximately 1,000 natural hot springs, Hungary has more than its fair share of thermal waters and is home to Lake Heviz, the world’s largest thermal lake.

The Budapest area alone has more than 125 thermal springs and is bursting with healing mineral baths from the elegant Gellert baths to the rustic Miskolctapolca Cave Baths about two hours outside of the city.

The mineral rich waters are said to aid in everything from aching joints to asthma.

Pinball wizards

For about $15 you can play all day at the Budapest Pinball Museum ($10 for those under 26 or over 62).

Memento Park

After the fall of communism, many Soviet statues were removed from Budapest streets and relocated to this sculpture park at the edge to town. For a deeper dive, guided tours are available that will provide a pretty good idea of what life was like during Soviet times.

A train run by children!

Gyermekvasut is the world’s largest children’s railway (operated with adult supervision of course).

Keeping track

The No. 2 tram follows the curve of the Danube River and is a great way to see the Parliament building up close and get a panoramic view of Buda Castle across the river. It’s rated as one of the Top 10 tram rides by National Geographic.

Hospital in the Rock

This Second World War hospital was created in the caverns under Buda Castle.

Also worth seeing

* Wandering around, you’ll see an eclectic collection of statues. Be on the lookout for Columbo and a Michael Jackson memorial tree.

* The Great Market hall is Hungary’s largest and oldest indoor market.

* The old-style First Strudel House of Pest.

* A boat cruise on the Danube River.

* The statue of Imre Nagy, the former prime minister who was executed by the Soviets in 1958. The statue stands on a little bridge at Martyrs’ Plaza. Nagy is depicted looking toward the parliament with his back to the Soviet Red Army memorial in Liberty Square.

* A gathering place for locals, Liberty Square has several interesting monuments and a park at its centre. Not wanting to cause a backlash by tearing down the Red Army monument that dominates the square, a pro-democracy monument was erected — one of Ronald Raegan marching toward the U.S. embassy.

Sip ’n’ savour side tours

For about $100, you can take a day tour to wineries around Etyek, about 30 km from Budapest, and sample vintages that are seldom exported because of the small amounts made.

It is an intimate experience to taste the whites, roses and reds made by these small producers, who often do everything themselves from growing the grapes, to harvesting, fermenting and bottling.

During the Soviet years, almost all vineyards were under communist control and quality suffered. Private wineries came back on the scene in the 1990s and are once again making excellent wine. We visited three wineries on our tour:

Anonym Winery — for music lovers: Its wine labels are based on music — soundwaves that give this wine a heartbeat all its own.

Gradowski Estate: A warmer microclimate allows the winery to use less pesticide and create more organic wines.

Nagy Gabor is the winery’s owner and one-man show. He says after the collapse of communism, people began to drink more wine.

“There is a French saying that to be a millionaire in a winery, you first would’ve been a billionaire,” Gabor says with a laugh.

A small aircraft operator in his spare time, his labels are based on pilots.

Gabor is currently experimenting with Kadarka grapes cloned from 100-year-old vineyards. Once widely grown in Hungary, the Kadarka’s popularity declined in the 20th century.

“We describe (Kadarka wine) as a friendly, easy to drink and understand wine, best to compliment Hungarian cuisine with garlic and paprika,” Gabor says.

Debreczeni-Ferenczi —A match made in heaven: After enjoying some warm paprika chicken and wine at this stop, we went next door to meet the cheese maker — Hegedus Imre — and sample fresh and aged cheese.

Stay in Grand style

The stately Iberostar Grand Budapest hotel has a great location close to everything — the Danube River, the famous Chain Bridge, St. Stephen’s Basilica, Liberty Square and more. Guests can stay like royalty for a fraction of the royal price. Rates at the five-star hotel start about $200 per night.

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